Truck Scatters Walkers On Pedestrian-Only Bridge In Willimantic

WILLIMANTIC — A person drove a pickup truck over the pedestrian-only Garden on the Bridge on Saturday night, forcing several people, including a small child, to leap into the weeds to avoid being hit, police said.

One person was taken to Windham Hospital with injuries that were not life threatening, and the child was not hurt, police said.

The truck drove off Main Street about 8 p.m. and headed onto the bridge, which features a garden and a walking path, police said. The pedestrians on the bridge managed to leap out of the way, and the truck continued on, hitting a wooden fence, a post that acts as a barrier for an electrical box, and an aluminum light pole before getting back on a road and heading south on Route 32, police said.

The truck was described as a full-size, white pickup, a model from the late 1990s or early 2000s, and it has rear left taillight damage as well as new damage to the right front headlight and bumper, police said.

The police department's accident reconstruction team is handling the investigation. Anyone with information is asked to contact the department.